No Escape
by The Mouse Avenger
Summary: An account of the final moments of Michelle's parents. Read & review, but no flames, please!


**NO ESCAPE  
**A "_Once Upon A Forest_" Fanfiction By The Mouse Avenger

AUTHOR'S NOTES: This story—the first of several new "_Once Upon A Forest_" fanfics that I now have plans to write—actually got its origins from an OUAF RPG that I did with a couple of friends a few years ago. One part of the RPG featured a series of flashbacks that explained what might have happened to the Furlings' missing parents, with the last one giving an in-depth look into what Michelle's parents' final moments might have been like. That RPG scenario eventually gave me the idea to write this story.

When you're finished reading, feel free to leave a review. I'll take anything from simple comments to constructive criticism, as long as they're not flames or written in a mean, stern, or overly-harsh manner.

Oh, & all "_Once Upon A Forest_" characters, elements, & properties © 20th Century Fox. I only claim ownership to the story itself, along with the names for Michelle's parents & grandparents.

That having been said, I sincerely hope you enjoy the fanfiction.

* * *

It was a sunny, peaceful day in Dapplewood Forest...almost _too_ peaceful, in fact. Looking out the window of his family's burrow, Oceanus The Badger could see no signs of activity anywhere in the area around the house. Not a creature was stirring, & the air was deadly quiet; even the birds had stopped singing! _How very unusual, _Oceanus thought to himself in great puzzlement, as he turned away from the window, & sat back down in his chair at the kitchen table, where he & Robin (his wife of 6 years) [1] were having an early lunch. The couple's young daughter, 5-year-old Michelle, was away at school, & she would surely be given lunch after she & her friends got back from that big field trip that Robin & Oceanus had heard so much about.

"I do hope Michelle's having a good time," Robin said pleasantly, as she helped herself to her salad, honey-coated walnuts, cream-of-mushroom soup, & bowl of assorted berries. "She's been looking forward to Cornelius' nature ramble all week long!"

"Oh, don't I know it!" Oceanus agreed, nodding his head in assent. "Ever since Cornelius made the announcement last Friday, Michelle just couldn't stop talking about the field trip, & how excited she was to be going...Oh, but she was _especially_ excited about the big surprise that Cornelius had planned for the Furlings at the end of the ramble! Whatever it was, it must have been something really spectacular!"

"I have no doubt of it," Robin replied with a smile. "You know how Cornelius is...always wanting to amaze fursons!"

After Robin & Oceanus took a few minutes to eat some more of their lunch, Oceanus spoke up again: "You know, I think Michelle was also excited about the nature ramble, because this is the first out-of-school trip she's been allowed to go on. Up until now, whenever Cornelius took the class on a field trip, Michelle would always stay home with us until her uncle & all her friends came back. Poor Michelle always felt so left out...but, now, we won't have to worry about that anymore!" [2]

"Quite right, Oceanus!" Robin remarked cheerfully. "When Michelle gets back home from school, I'll bet she'll be dying to tell us all about her first field trip!"

"I can definitely say the same, darling," Oceanus agreed. And with that, the Badger couple went back to eating their lunch in serene silence...unaware that danger would soon be lurking in what they thought was the safest & most-secure place in the world.

Just as soon as she & Oceanus had finally finished their midday meal, Robin began to put away the empty dishes, bowls, & cups...but on her way to the kitchen sink, she suddenly stopped in her tracks, & paused to sniff the air. A very peculiar—& very pungent—smell was flowing into her nostrils...& it was getting stronger by the minute. "What on Earth could be making that dreadful odor?" Robin asked aloud, turning to look at Oceanus with a quizzical expression.

"I'm not sure, Robin," Oceanus replied to his wife. "Maybe, it's just..." Before he could say any more, Oceanus suddenly began to cough & choke, & it wasn't long before Robin began to do the same.

"Wait, Oceanus!" Robin exclaimed, her speech occasionally interrupted by bursts of hacking. "I'll go to the window, & see if I can find out what's causing the smell." And, so, Robin walked over to the kitchen window, before taking a look outside...& feeling the blood in her veins run icy-cold. Only a few minutes ago, the trees, flowers, & other vegetation in Dapplewood were all thriving healthily; now, however, they were all dead or wilting, reduced to little more than dried, shriveled-up chaff in bleak shades of gray, brown, & grayish-green. Even _more_ horrifying, however, was the sight of a bright-green mist that was seeping through the area near the Badger family's home, just outside their window!

_Oh, no, _Robin thought fearfully to herself, as she shook her head in self-denial. _It __can't__ be happening...Not here, not now!_

Almost immediately, Robin flashed back to that horrible night 40 years ago, when her life had changed forever...

* * *

"_And, so, the brave Sir Giles left the king's castle, & set out to embark on his great quest, hoping he could get to Princess Amelia before time ran out," Mary-Ann The Badger read aloud from the large storybook she held in her paws. The happy housewife & her husband, Moses, were seated next to each other in front of the warm fire blazing in the hearth, while their two young Furlings—12-year-old Cornelius, & 7-year-old Robin—sat in front of them on the living-room rug, listening attentively to the bedtime story that their mother was telling them. (Well, Robin was fully focused on Mary-Ann's tale, but absentminded Cornelius was paying more attention to his beloved stuffed bird—he just couldn't stop playing with it!) The Badger family's home was all decorated for the holidays, & Cornelius, Robin, Moses, & Mary-Ann had just put the last of the ornaments on their Christmas tree this morning. Now, all they had to do was count the days until Father Yule _[3]_ arrived with his bag full of presents & goodies..._

_Suddenly, everything in the Badger home came to a halt when a startling sound—a loud, heavy clatter—resonated from outside. Whatever it was, it couldn't mean anything good! Quickly rising from his chair, Moses looked down at Cornelius & Robin with panic in his eyes, & pointed a finger towards the entrance of the tunnel that led to the front door. "Run!" Moses commanded his two Furlings, trying hard to mask his growing sense of fear. "Run for the exit!"_

_Without wasting another second, Cornelius (still carrying his stuffed bird) & Robin rose to their feet, dashed out of the living room, & raced down the entry tunnel, not stopping until they finally got to the front door...& when they saw what was going on outside, Cornelius & Robin immediately became consumed with overwhelming terror. The forest of Willowbrook was being invaded by humans! The animals in the community—including the Badger family—had heard many stories about these strange beings, but no one in Willowbrook had ever had the opportunity to see a human up close...until now. And as if their first sighting of a human wasn't shocking enough, nothing could have prepared Cornelius or Robin for what was about to happen next..._

_One of the human intruders was standing in front of the Badger family's house, placing a large metal barrel right outside the open door. Cornelius & Robin were paralyzed with fear, but Mary-Ann & Moses (who were now standing right behind the Furlings) wouldn't allow their emotions to gain control of them. Sure, the two adult badgers feared the humans, & what they would do to them, but they were even more concerned about the safety of their son & daughter. "Don't just stand there," Mary-Ann told Cornelius & Robin in a frantic whisper. "Go! Go now, before it's too late!"_

_With that, Cornelius & Robin did as they were told, & rushed out of the entry burrow, leaving their parents behind. The two Furlings managed to find shelter in the hollow of a nearby log, but poor Mary-Ann & Moses could only watch, terrified, as the humans placed a steel trap right in front of their doorway, & began to fill their house with poison gas..._

* * *

_And, now, it's happening to us! _Robin thought sorrowfully, her heart sinking at the very notion of enduring the same horrible fate that befell her late parents. She became so lost in her thoughts & emotions, that she didn't notice the awful green gas seeping into her family's burrow...until it was finally too late. In just a few short minutes, the gas had filled every inch of the Badger family's house, & Robin & Oceanus began coughing & choking again...only, this time, the hacking fits were even _more_ violent than they were earlier. At this point, Robin & Oceanus started to panic, & with each frantic breath they took, a cloud of noxious chlorine [4] found its way into either badger's mouth, before heading down the throat, & into the lungs.

Soon, Robin & Oceanus began to feel the effects of their gas poisoning, & the two quickly realized that they wouldn't have much time left to escape; if they were to survive, they had to leave the burrow immediately. "Robin," Oceanus called out to his wife, "we must try & get out!"

By now, Robin was growing extremely weak, & she was finding it increasingly hard to stand up. Leaning onto the kitchen table for support, Robin struggled to form a reply, her lungs burning like fire with every word she spoke: "I can't...get out!" (Robin coughed & choked for a few seconds.) "I need to know if...Michelle is safe!"

"Don't worry, Robin," Oceanus said reassuringly, trying his best to comfort his wife, despite the grim situation they were in. "Michelle's with Cornelius & the Furlings, & she'll be safe with them. Remember..."—cough—"...they are on their nature ramble."

Now, Oceanus was really starting to choke on the gas, & he launched into a fierce fit of hacking, interrupted by an occasional wheeze. This continued for several moments, until Oceanus finally managed to stop when he heard Robin cry out, "Wait..."—cough—"...I can hear..."—cough, cough—"...fursons outside!" After letting another few coughs, Robin became quiet, & Oceanus followed suit; almost immediately, both badgers could hear faint, but familiar, voices crying out in the distance.

When he finally recognized who the voices belonged to, Oceanus felt his heart leap in his chest! "It's Cornelius & the Furlings!" Oceanus exclaimed to himself, before looking off in the direction of the entrance to the Badger family's house, & calling out as loudly as he could, "_HELP US!_" Suddenly, Oceanus' ears perked up to the sound of a soft moan, & he swiftly turned his head back around...just in time to see Robin collapse out of her chair, & onto the kitchen floor. "Robin!" Oceanus gasped, horrified at the sight of his wife lying motionless at his feet. No doubt, Robin had finally succumbed to the toxic effects of the chlorine gas...& it wouldn't be much longer before the same thing happened to Oceanus. "_Help!_" the male badger cried out with all the energy he could muster, even as he coughed & choked on the venomous verdant fumes filling his lungs & nostrils. "_Help__!_"

"Hello?" a little girl's voice cried out, echoing deep into the inner recesses of the burrow. "Mommy, is that you?"

Oceanus immediately felt cold chills running up & down his spine when he saw his daughter—none other than Michelle—rush down the stairs, & into the space between the kitchen & her bedroom. "Michelle," Oceanus shouted urgently, "get back up there now!" No sooner did Oceanus give out this last command, than he was finally overpowered by the deadly chlorine gas; with a final cough, Oceanus collapsed onto his chair by the dining-room window, & moved no more.

Michelle became scared when she saw the horrible sight of her parents lying lifelessly before her. "Mommy, Daddy," she cried out fearfully, "what's wrong with you?!" Before Michelle could say or do anything else, a peculiar, pungent odor began to fill her nostrils, & she started to cough & choke. "What's that strange smell?" Michelle asked aloud, before coughing a few more times, & collapsing not too far from the foot of her bed. It only took a few seconds for Michelle to lose consciousness, & with that, the little badger slipped into a deep coma.

Just a few moments afterward, Michelle's oldest friend, Abigail The Woodmouse, was making her way into the Badger family's burrow, carefully searching the house for any sign of Michelle. (The mouse had the front of her overalls pulled up over her mouth & nose, so that she wouldn't breathe any of the poisonous gas that was filling the area.) Just as Abigail was passing by the kitchen, she suddenly let go of her makeshift mask, & let out a frightened gasp when she saw Michelle's parents lying by their dinner table—dead! _Oh, how awful! _Abigail thought sorrowfully. _Poor Mr. & Mrs. Badger..._ [5]

Unfortunately, Abigail did not realize that she had accidentally exposed herself to the chlorine gas, & some of the fumes began to enter her mouth & nostrils...but, thankfully, Abigail snapped back to her senses when her ears perked up to the sound of coughing nearby. Michelle was lying just a few feet away from her—& she was still alive! Not wasting another second, Abigail went over to Michelle, then picked her up by the underarms, & struggled to carry her out of the burrow. As fate would have it, Abigail & Michelle both managed to make it out of the Badger family's house with their lives...but for Oceanus & Robin, there would be no escape. Any hope of rescuing them was long gone.

THE END

* * *

[1] The name I picked for Michelle's mother, oddly enough, was also used as her name in her character bio on the "Once Upon A Forest" Page. I'm not entirely surprised, though—I imagine that "Robin" would be a very popular (& very appropriate) fan-name for the character, given her brother's obsession with birds, flying machines, & whatnot. Perhaps, Cornelius suggested the name to his parents after his sister was born... ;-)

[2] Given Michelle's excitement about getting to "go with [the Furlings] on [their] ramble", & her various displays of eagerness & enthusiasm during the field trip, I assume that this is the first time Michelle's ever gone on an out-of-class excursion with her friends. The OUAF storybook & the "Once Upon A Forest" Page appear to imply the same thing.

[3] Father Yule, of course, is my idea of what the creatures of the "_Once Upon A Forest_" world would call Santa Claus. If you ask me, I think the name has a very cute, old-fashioned charm to it—kind of like the OUAF world (& the movie) itself, not to mention the characters' use of herbal medicine, celestial timekeeping, Da-Vinci-esque flying machines, & other things of that nature.

[4] Look up the article for chlorine on Wikipedia, & you'll understand many things about OUAF (& this fanfic) that you probably never even knew before...unless you're a chemistry whiz. ;-)

[5] I suppose that just about everyone in Dapplewood knows each other on a first-name basis, but Cornelius is the only adult (or one of very few adults) that the Furlings refer to by prename.


End file.
